“Outlander” returns to Starz on Saturday (April 4) night and fans of the book are going to notice that there are a few reasonably big deviations, including a one-episode shift in POV from Claire to Jamie.

She added, “For this particular episode, that was particularly effective.”

Gabaldon is referring specifically to the notorious spanking scene that takes place in Saturday's episode and has been interpreted in myriad different ways by fans and dismissers of the book.

The author, who first published “Outlander” in 1991 and has followed it up with eight novels, says that “it's not hard at all” to watch the Starz series and view it as separate from the books. Of course, it helps that Gabaldon sees scripts and dailies from the series. She adds that she only sometimes pushes for changes.

“I will mention it if there's something that I think is actually wrong, not if it's just a change,” she emphasized. “Changes have to be made. It's an adaptation and frequently the changes are brilliant and I love them.”